Kalinga Literary Festival Kathmandu to host over 200 writers

New Delhi, Oct 13 (IANS) The Kalinga Literary Festival Kathmandu (KLF-Kathmandu), to be held on October 15 and 16, will host over 200 writers from India and Nepal.

This year, Kalinga-Kathmandu Yashswi Sahitya Sanman will be given to Nepalese writer Satya Mohan Joshi, and Indian writer Ashok Vajpeyi.

The central theme of the Festival will be "India & Nepal: Journey of Civilizations and Search for the Soul". Noted writers Tulasi Diwasa, Ashok Vajpeyi and Kanak Mani Dixit will be the keynote speakers of the festival on the Central theme

Conversation sessions with Bollywood actor and lyricist Piyush Mishra, Hindi lyricist Raj Sekhar, Indian folk singer Malini Awasthi, former Indian Ambassador to Nepal Ranjit Rae, Vajpeyi and others will also be organised. Poetry recitation sessions in Nepali, Bhojpuri, Maithili, Hindi, and English will also be held. "Ram Ki Shakti Puja" will be performed by the Vyomesh Shukla and Artists of Roopvani from Varanasi.

Noted Indian writers including Vajpeyi, Arun Kamal, Ranjit Rae, Anand Nelkanthan, OM Tanvi, Gagam Gill, Malini Awasthi, Dr Sudha Gopalakrishnan, Ashok Maheswari (MD Rajkamal Prakashan), Satyanand Nirupam (Editorial Director, Rajkamal Prakashan Group), Piyush Mishra, Raj Sekhar, poet and theatre activist Vyomesh Shukla, Navita Srikant, Debasish Samantray and others will join the festival as speakers.

From Nepal, major writers like Satya Mohan Joshi, noted poet and folklore expert Diwasa,Dixit, noted artist Ragini Upadhyay, Maya Thakuri, Dr Jagman Gurung, Dinesh Adhikari, Prof Gopal Bhandari, Basanta Chaudhary, Prof Basudev Tripathi, Dhirendra Premarashi, Nayan Raje Pandey, Ashes Malla, Manju Kanchuli Tiwari, Nayan Raje Pandey, Dr Gyanu Pandey, Tirtha Shrestha, Dr Pushparaj Rajkarnikar, Narad Bagrachary, Pratisara Sayami, Sneh Sayami, Dr Bhavna Pokhrel, Santosh Kumar Pokhrel, Subas Singh Parajuli, Susanth Thapa, Manisha Koirala, Rajendra Ojha, Bhojkumar Dhamala, Bhuvan Thaplia, Ujala Kapali, Kavita Singhal, Trina Chakraborty, Asmita Manandhar, Mahesh Paudel, Suman Pokhrel, Susanth Kumar V.K., Bhishma Upreti, Akanksha Upreti, Anup Baral, Shishir Upreti, Raj Shah, Maya Thakuri, Amar Neupane, Narayan Dhakal and Ganesh Lath besides others will participate.

Yashaswi Prangya Pratisthan, Himalayan Diary Pvt Ltd, Rastrika Sahitya Pratisthan, Nepal-Kalinga Literary Festival joined hands for KLF Kathmandu Edition to celebrate the spirit of Lord Shiva and Gautama Buddha in the context of Nepal-India literary ties. The festival will focus on the glorious traditions of Nepal.

"Kalinga Literary Festival Kathmandu will showcase literature, music, dance, poetry and other art forms. It will be a lifetime experience for lovers of literature, music, dance, art and poetry. The Festival will celebrate the long-standing ties between Nepal and India in the context of the emerging global cultures," said KLF Founder and Director, Rashmi Ranjan Parida.

"We plan to celebrate great literary, spiritual, cultural traditions of Nepal. Among other aspects, the theme of Shiv and Buddha Tatwa and its contribution to South Asia and global literary movements and traditions. The festival will have panel discussions on literature, art, culture, and history, and showcase artistic traditions from Nepal and India, in addition to the world of Nepalese and Indian art and music," said Ranjana Niraula, KLF-Kathmandu, Director, Curator and Co-Ordinator.